Curious, Why dual belts on TS?

My new to me old craftsman TS has dual belt pulleys, it's no big deal other than it has me wondering as to why & if newer saws are set-up that way..:dunno:
FWIW, it seems fine with one or both belts running...anyways, you know what killed the cat, right.... :D
 
Both of my 3hp cabinet saws have had three (3) belts. No doubt, it's to ensure transfer of power with no slippage. My original 1.5hp Craftsman had a single belt that would squeak occasionally on startup until I replaced it with a link belt.
 
you old timers er I mean more mature folks figured it out. its for power transfer. never seen one of them thar 2 belters only ones and threes.
We had a 14inch 7.5 horse Powermatic at a shop I worked at. it was the biggest piece of junk Ive ever worked with. mainly because I think it got dropped on delivery and the prior shop manager was too apathetic to send it back. Anywho, it had three belts but was out of whack just enough to only have one actually making solid contact. That and the fact that there was a huge swale in the table that, again, instead of having a new saw sent to replace it he brought someone in to plane it flat.... o_O
Well, that lack of 2 belts I think saved my life and my hand one day when a piece of antique chestnut decided to explode on the saw as I was running it through, the work piece and my hand were wedged between the blade and the fence while part of it exploded back into me (good thing I had plenty of padding. took a shard about 2 inches into my gut) I was able to force the piece through and it actually stopped the blade... had all three been on there correctly I may have lost my hand and that piece would have shot out of there with a lot more force...
 
Be glad it wasn't a Northfield Tablesaw. Most of them are direct drive.

The bigger powermatic saws 72/74 are scary. The blade is way out into the field making them awkward to run by hand. I've never felt comfortable using one that way. With a good powerfeed though? They rock! Full speed on the feeder, two guys, and hammer through material. Still not as good as a genuine rip saw, but much improved over running stuff by hand.
 
you old timers er I mean more mature folks figured it out. its for power transfer. never seen one of them thar 2 belters only ones and threes.
We had a 14inch 7.5 horse Powermatic at a shop I worked at. it was the biggest piece of junk Ive ever worked with. mainly because I think it got dropped on delivery and the prior shop manager was too apathetic to send it back. Anywho, it had three belts but was out of whack just enough to only have one actually making solid contact. That and the fact that there was a huge swale in the table that, again, instead of having a new saw sent to replace it he brought someone in to plane it flat.... o_O
Well, that lack of 2 belts I think saved my life and my hand one day when a piece of antique chestnut decided to explode on the saw as I was running it through, the work piece and my hand were wedged between the blade and the fence while part of it exploded back into me (good thing I had plenty of padding. took a shard about 2 inches into my gut) I was able to force the piece through and it actually stopped the blade... had all three been on there correctly I may have lost my hand and that piece would have shot out of there with a lot more force...

Or it might not have happened at all. The RPM's would have stayed up and might never had hiccuped at all at that piece of wood.
 
I was amazed at how many of the factory v-belts on my machines are rated fractional horsepower (the fraction depends on the pulley, but even two fractional hp belts do not add up to the 4.8 or 5 hp on most of my machines. I have upgraded the belts, and with the "heaviest" belts that fit the pulleys, etc., need at least 2 belts for 4-5 hp.
 
Yes that was always a bit of a nail biter having to reach so far over on that machine!
Jonathan, the board itself disintegrated and blew up as I was feeding it that wasn't the saw. once it blew was when the piece went cockeyed. either way it was one heckuva hairy moment...
 
Top